


Brooklyn

by dreamchaser31



Series: Brooklyn [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Compliant, F/M, Therapy, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-08
Updated: 2017-08-08
Packaged: 2018-12-12 14:15:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11738745
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dreamchaser31/pseuds/dreamchaser31
Summary: We always looked for Brooklyn in the stars





	Brooklyn

The drawings were working. A therapy technique usually used on children to get them to open up about their experiences, good or bad, was working on the soldier who Sam had come to actually like the short time they'd been in their Wakandan hideout.

He was out of cryo, and getting use to a high-tech, new vibranium arm. Technology that he knew even Stark didn't have yet. Sam could see that while Bucky sported ambidextrous tendnecies, he was majorly left hand dominant. So gaining the use of his good arm had been not only good for him physically, but mentally as well. 

Since the surgery last week to replace it, Bucky has been in therapy with him every single day, just like before. But unlike before where he would sit there and stare ahead, slate eyes desolate as he listened to him talk and ask questions, there was a pep in his step. He still didn't talk, but he did listen. 

Steve was worried about his friend, and the silence and couldn't make it past his first session with him. Sam had told him it was ok. While Steve still carried guilt about not going after his best friend, he could communicate that in later sessions when Bucky was ready to hear it. He had little doubt that Bucky did not blame him. But Steve as noble as he was, always took everything upon his shoulders. Sam couldn't understand, because for real, Bucky would have been gone before they had found him. 

The last thing in Steve's connection to his past was Bucky, after losing Peggy. The desolation in Steve's eyes at her funeral said it all. As much as Steve had adapted to the present days, there were always going to be what ifs. Steve never had an option to not go after Bucky. Neither did Sam for that matter. Anything to help his leader and friend. Steve was the most giving person on the planet. He had single handedly earned the right to be selfish for once in his life and Sam would not, could not judge him for that.

They talked about Bucky's therapy with T'Challa for a few days after sessions that produced no results. Scott had brought up maybe letting him draw to help bring out some results. Sam almost disagreed since it was a technique primarily used on children but he stopped. Nothing else was working. Sam could talk and talk until he was blue in the face and Bucky would never respond. 

So their next session, armed with pencils, crayons, colored , markers, and an eraser, he set it in front of Bucky. And when the soldier eyed him warily Sam smiled. "Just something different to pass the time. You ever used a crayon before?" He'd replied he hadn't and took one, in his left hand, and began to draw. 

It was a half hour before he actually got anything legible from him. History books taught that Steve was an artist. Sam had seen enough of Steve's work to realize that was true. None taught that Bucky Barnes could could hold his own against his friend. That was the least shocking observation of the day. 

The soldier actually smiled. 

He was a fast drawrer. His first picture he sketched in all black. It was if him. His arm, the old one with the star, and a cross through it, like the one's you see in those 'No Smoking Signs'. Sam found it interesting that before his arm was replaced, Barnes seemed lost and heartbroken almost. He hadn't known what to do. Sam had guessed that most people who had to have a limb severed would be the same way, but this was different. He got his arm replaced and he was suddenly more confident, smiling even. But here, in his first pictured, he had crossed it out. Not even his entire person.

Just the arm. 

It could mean that he didn't want to be identified by what the arm represented. But Sam could still see, if he looked closely while the soldier was drawing, the usual mask of indeference was gone, and the grey eyes had gone blue, and a raw, wanting, hope filled the soldiers face in an expression that almost took his breath away. 

And on his finger, just below the bar crossing out the left arm was a ring. Interesting. Barnes wasn't married. Nor did they know if any preference for any woman of their acquaintance recently. Steve had said that Bucky was a ladies man back in his prime before the war, always going on dates and dancing when he wasn't working or pulling Steve out if another of his many fights. 

Even more interesting was that Bucky, who seemed fascinated by so many colors, would do this one in all black. Maybe signifying something long gone in the past. He would push this drawing away for later.

Bucky drew with a speed that left him incredulous but spared no attention to detail. His next drawing was of Steve. Reaching down for hands that were flailing up, reaching for his own. "This from the day you fell, Bucky?"

Bucky nodded and continued to draw. 

"Tell me about that day. What was the weather like?"

For the first time the soldier looked him in the eyes. Sam had noticed his eyes changed colors a lot, no doubt due to his conflicted emotions. Slate was when he was in what Sam called his 'soldier mode', as much as Steve hated that. When he was angry they were a a darker blue. And when he was pensive or happy they were as bright as Captain America's blue's ever could be. 

They were slate now. They were usually slate in these sessions. "It was cold. A lot of snow fell the night before. We didn't want to work that day. We didn't know the conditions. But we couldn't pass the oppurtunity."

In the month in a half Sam had been trying to get him to speak about something, anything really, all it took was a drawing and one simple question about the weather. So he took the indirect approach to frame his next question. "Where did you stay in between missions? Like I know you used tents, but how did you choose locations?"

The soldier shook his head. "We didn't use tents much. The group of us usually rented rooms if we could. We were constantly traveling and didn't sleep much. People were usually willing to put up ally troops in their homes, even if they were passing through. We had gained a lot of recognition so everyone knew who were were.."

"Must have been tough."

"Most of the time we didn't notice. We were busy."

"Steve said something about girls throwing themselves at you."

He shook his head again. "Maybe before he joined the army. After women barely paid any attention to me if he was next to me. Which was usually the case."

"You were his second in command?"

"They were my men before we got captured."

"What did the men think about playing back up to Captain America?"

The soldier sighed. "That was war, not a fucking play. It was people's lives in the line every single time we went out. Our lives on the line every single time. And Steve risked far more than we ever did. We saw that. He was the one who took the most hits. He was our leader in every sense and damn anyone who says otherwise."

Sam decided another aporoach. "Was is it tough to have your roles in your personal life so reversed?"

"I was sick. And happy for Steve."

"Did you ever date?"

He looked away before he returned back to his drawing and Sam knew he hit a nerve so he tried another approach. "This woman here. That's Peggy right?"

He nods. 

"Who's the woman next to her. The one with the blue dress?"

He nods again. 

"Ok." He looks at the drawing again. Peggy and the unknown woman. The woman was beautiful in a way that put beautiful Peggy on the backburner and that was saying something. "Peggy was a beautiful woman. She did a lot of good for a lot of people."

The soldier snorted, actually snorted. 

"This woman looks very modern though. The way her hair is done. That's how woman usually wear it now. Even her legs. No stockings?"

"Didn't like 'em. Refused to wear 'em." A smile graced the soldiers lips when he focused on his new drawing once more. 

"I bet that caused quite a scandal among the men. No stockings."

He shrugged and Sam blew out a breath and looked again. "So she's wearing a ring, Bucky. Right here. Was she married?"

He shrugged again. 

"In fact she's wearing the same style of ring that you are in your first picture." *He picks up the blcack and white picture and points it out.* "were you friends?"

He nods. 

"Good friends? Were these like friendship rings?"

"What?"

"You know friendship rings? These days thay are pretty common. I didn't know you had them back then. Usually one friend gives them to another friend to show true friendship."

He shakes his head again and continues to draw. And this time, Sam can see, the woman's face up close. A familiar, beautiful face. A few freckles along the bridge of her nose. Wide, brown eyes. Long, auburn hair. And a sweet smile that almost made he himself weak. The attention to detail he put into her portrait in both pictures, showed he knew an intimacy with her he hadn't had with Peggy Carter. The history books hadn't prepared him for this. 

Steve hadn't prepared him for this. 

"Would Steve know who this girl was?"

Another nod. 

"Were they friends?"

Another nod.

"How did you meet?" 

"Peggy?"

"No. This woman."

A pause, then a deep breath. "Stark had an intern. Don't know why. She was much smarter than him."

"So she travelled with you guys? Did she fight?"

"No. She helped with weapons."

Sam nods and goes back to studying the new picture he just finished. This one was more intimate. She in a long shirt, hair loose and down, standing in front of a bed, arms open and inviting and he feels like he's invading someone's privacy. "She was beautiful."

He nods.

"Did you date?"

Another nod.

"What was that like? Dating in war time?"

"It wasn't. Maybe dinner a couple nights. Not dates."

"More like hookups?"

The soldier looked confused.

"Hookups are what we call these days dating without commitment. Most often with sex. "

The soldier...growled?

"I AM NOT STARK. Nor will I ever be Stark. I may have played around as a boy but my Pa taught me how to be a man. A real man does not put a lady into a position like that unless he is committed to her. I've read the books. I know what they say sbout me. They are fucking liars."

He couldn't help but stare at the man who had come alive at one simple accusation. "Tell me about her. What did you guys talk about?"

"Everything. Life. War. Dreams."

"What was her dream?"

"Finding home."

"And yours?" Bucky knew that he knew. His eyes went blue. He put the color up, sat back and watched him for a few seconds before exhaling and running a hand through his hair. 

"What do you want to know?"

Sam shot of a quick text to Steve -t-Find Jane Foster. And get her here. You remember that little incident Thor told us about a few months ago before he left indefinitely? They broke up because of it, right? And how could you not recognize Jane Foster? -s-

-Steve- i've never met Jane Foster yet. I was supposed to but D.C. happened. But I'll get her here. What's the big deal? -s-

Sam puts up his phone and looks at Bucky who's eyes are still blue but watching him suspiciously. "Everything. Tell me everything. What's her name?"

His reply is automatic. "Jane. Smartest girl I ever met."

"You met through Stark?"

"Yes."

"How did he meet her?"

"I'm not sure."

"So when you said you weren't Stark earlier, you meant Tony's father, right?"

He frowns the smiles as he recognizes Sam's dilemma. "Like father, like son?"

"You could say that. How did this start?"

"We just were out together a lot. My guns started getting more and more complicated as Stark played around with his toys."

"You were a sniper?"

He nods yes. 

"How did she feel about that?"

"She didn't like the war. She called it World War Two a lot. I guess it makes sense now."

"Did she like working with Stark?"

"She put up with him. Called him an idiot a lot."

"How did he respond to that?"

"Stark loved Peggy and Jane. If anyone else had called him that they woulda been laid out. Most likely at the hands of Peggy and Jane."

"Were there other women around? Other than Peggy and Jane?"

"Not many. A few secretaries. But other than that no."

"So she would help you make sense if your weapons? How did this turn into something else?" *Same holds up the last picture* "Because this is a beautiful picture Bucky. But this displays something more than friendship here. How did you get from talks of weapons to this picture?"

He ran a hand through his hair again before repsonding. "We were in a firefight. A few Hydra Spies broke through our barriers using weapons that had been created that we had never seen before. Even Stark couldn't fathom the technology. I was in my nest, that's what Dum Dum called it. And a bomb went off a few feet away. They knew I'd be there but miscalculated it. I couldn't get to the base until all the smoke cleared and they were all worried. We were watching the stars that night, she loved the stars, and she told me she loved me."

"Had a woman ever told you she loved you before?"

He nods. 

"How did this make you feel?"

"I was flying. None of those girls meant anything. Jane was there, saw me at my worse, and it didn't matter to her. I kissed her for the first time that night."

"You told her you loved her?"

"No. Not right away."

"That must have been hard for her."

"She never said anything."

"When did you tell her? How?"

"When I realized that I didn't want to live without her. She got sick and was in the infermery. I guess it was over something she ate, but at that time everything overseas was so much more exaggerated." 

"What happened after you told her?"

"Nothing. She held my hand and smiled. She wasn't like most girls. She was immune to my charms. That's what Steve always said."

"Tell me about this picture. That's her and Peggy, right?"

A nod. 

"What's going on here?"

"The girl's were going to go out dancing."

"With the guys?"

"We couldn't. We had an Op the next morning. The girls hated it when we had a mission as much as they supported us. They danced to relax."

"Any guys ever give them trouble?"

A slow smile appears on his face, and Sam sees the real Bucky Barnes. "They could handle themselves." 

Sam had heard stories of Jane training with Natasha. And while this whole story was somewhat unbelievable, Bucky couldn't have made this stuff up. "You called her Jane. Did she have a last name?"

"Barnes. Her last name was Barnes."

"No Bucky. Wait... What?"

"That was her last name." He shruggs matter of factly. 

"How?" 

"She was my wife."

"Oh ummm.... Ok."

 

Steve couldn't believe his eyes as T'Challa escorted Jane Foster into the living room the Avengers in hiding now shares with their families. It was Jane. Bucky's Jane. 

'Thor's Jane?'

He met her with a small smile and a raised brow and she had the decency to blush when she met his gaze. "Jane Foster, huh."

"Steve, I-"

He pulls her into his arms for a hug that took her breath away. "I don't need explanations. I'm just glad you're here now. Come doll. And you can tell me how you managed to avoid seeing me these last two three years."

"It's a long story."

"Believe me. I've got lots of time, doll." 

"Well first-" she motions to a woman behind her carrying a child.

A child with long, wavy, brown hair, and striking blue eyes. "Bucky's eyes."

Jane nods. "Is he alright? I need to know if he's alright. I've spent the last three months trying ro infiltrate any system I coukd for information on him." She chokes back a sob. "I didn't know he was alive until the bombing. He didn't do that. I know he didn't Steve!"

"He didn't, doll. We know."

She reaches for her little girl who goes to her while keeping a weary eye on him before a smile lights up her tiny face. For a moment her eyes change gray then back to blue and she points a finger at him that recently vacated her mouth. "Teve!"

"That's right honey. That's Steve." Jane faces him again her eyes shining with unconditional love. "Steve Rogers, I'd like you to meet my daughter, Miss Barnes."

Steve had never been more speechless in his life. 

 

 

"We eloped. No one knew. We could have gotten into trouble. We were going to tell everyone after the war. We never got a chance." 

"You both wanted that." 

"She said that we would never know how much time we had left. That a mission could go wrong and we would never see each other again. She was smart. Smarter than me." His eyes shift back to grey. 

"You miss her." It was a statement of fact. 

"With every breath. All these years have gone by. Every time they would wake me up and I'd remember her. She was alive in the world thinking I had abandoned her. And even if they declared me dead she would never receive any benefits from any of my living. Our marriage was a secret. I couldn't protect her. I hated myself."

"The rings in the picture?" 

"We never had rings. Couldn't afford them. As much as I wanted to give her one. I couldn't give her anything."

"I'm not sure that's true. In this first picture the ring is on your old hand."

"My dearest dream is that she was still alive today and wanting me." He shakes his head and sits back as voices raise in the hall alerting them of visitors. 

Sam looks at the clock. They'd been here talking for close to six hours. 

"Bucky there are a lot of things in this world that we will never understand. I've seen aliens and super soldiers and witches and gems that can destroy the universe. So when I tell you what I'm about to tell you I don't want you to freak out."

He nods.

"I know this girl. I've seen her before at the Avengers facility. She used to date one of the Avengers you haven't met yet."

Bucky's eyes go wide but luckily not grey. He was listening. 

"She's a scientist. One of the smartest people I've met. And a few years ago she disappeared for a couple weeks. Just gone in an explosion of light. I mean we have it on video. It was crazy. We seaeched and searched for her, while Steve searched and searched for you. The best we can guess is a portal opened and took her. She's done a lot of weird stuff with her science. Vision? Remember him?"

He nods.

"He's powered by an infinity stone. One of those universe destroying gems I told you about. Well Jane came into contact with one a few years ago and since then weird things have been happening to her. London was invaded, I'm sure you heard about that, by aliens. And she played a huge part with Thor in stopping them. In fact Thor said she is the only reason they were able to pull out a victory. She managed to rewired some devices that are used to create anamolies to study weather patterns, and made them create transport portals. She literally opened portals and sent the things to another dimension. Point being she....is..SMART." 

Bucky starts to smile. Beams even. 

"She reappeared two weeks after she disappeared and she broke up with Thor. Which shocked us all. They were the ones who were supposed to get married. Star-crossed lovers and all that. She's the first human to ever set foot on his world, Asgard. In fact she's the only one. The only thing that doesn't make sense in your timeline is that it seems to be months that this takes place and she was only gone two weeks. But the one person who could explain that is her. So we're having her broughg here. I texted Steve. I recognized her. Weird enough Steve has never met Jane this time around. I'm guessing since you didn't know her last name she didn't give you one so he didn't put two and two together."

"She's coming here?"

Sam looks up from his phone. "She's here. Now you have the choice to see her or not. It has to be your own free will, Barnes. This is the first step to the rest of YOUR life. Whethef you choose to fight along with us again when and if the time comes. Or you choose to settle here in Wakanda. Whatever you do next, all of it.... Is your choice. Understand?"

He hesitates this time and Sam continues. "I didn't want to like you Barnes. You did a lot of bad shit back then. Even broke my wings. But I think things happen for a reason. And you've been given this second chance to live. The world owes you a debt that it can never repay. Maybe Jane is the world's way of telling you that it has you well in hand."

A gasp at the door is the only way he knows they have visitors and the carefully prepared monologue fell on his lips as he watched Barnes reaction. His eyes wide as he took in the site of the woman who graced his drawings this afternoon, and, Sam guessed, his heart for far longer. 

"James,-" her cry of his name is strangled on her lips in an almost sob. "James. You're here." For all her grace and self assuredness she flung herself across the room and into his arms at a speed that he had to marvel at. And he sent a prayer of thanks that he had explained everything to Bucky beforehand. And he would forever be thankful that the woman who had created time travel had seen the many weirds of the world before. Her acceptance of Bucky in his new form could only help him heal that much fasted. He smiled at the couple, as Bucky wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight.

He turned to Steve who was watching the scene with tears in his eyes and a little girl on his hip who looked like Bucky Barnes reincarnated in a feminine form and his eyes go wide. 

Jane was pulling away and she was wiping her eyes, and his. And not resisting the pull for another kiss. And laughing as her happiness with the situation consumed her. "James. I have to show you something."

And he sees her. The child at Steve's hip who is waving her arms frantically for her mom. 

The child who looks like Bucky. 

They watch as the couple approach the child cautiously and Jane takes her on her hip nervously as Bucky stares. "We made all these plans. And I should have been honest with you. I had no idea. I mean I knew they found Steve but I had no idea. I didn't know." She soothes her hand over her daughter's hair. "I didn't know how long I had there. But all the plans we made. All of them. I wanted that James, so badly. I ached for you when you left. We always looked for Brooklyn in the stars. That's where we were going to end up. You talked about it so much, it became as much as a home to me as you had. I got pulled back two days after the incident. I found out I was pregnant a few weeks later." 

He swallows hard and nods and for the first time since seeing her again finds his voice. "What's her name? What's my daughter's name?"

"Brooklyn Elizabeth Barnes, meet your father. She's so excited to meet you James. She's talked about nothing else since we got the call."

"Brooklyn," his voice was gruff from emotion as he touches his daughter's arm and she smiles big at him. 

"We always wanted Brooklyn, James. In whatever way got it. Welcome home, love..


End file.
